Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Northrop Grumman has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 20 analysts, with 10 buy ratings, 2 strong buys, and 8 holds. The average 12-month price target is about $704.74.
• Recent analyst commentary has been mixed: some firms kept hold ratings, while others adjusted targets, including Citigroup cutting its price target to $628 and Argus setting a higher target at $785.
• The company remains a defense-sector beneficiary, with news noting its role in the Pentagon’s drone program and AI-related defense spending trends. Northrop also recently declared a $2.47 quarterly dividend, reinforcing its shareholder-return profile.

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $704.7368.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Vertical Research reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $688.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $742.00 to $628.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Argus set a $785.00 target price on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 147 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $732.98, for a total transaction of $107,748.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,525 shares in the company, valued at $1,850,774.50. This represents a 5.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 176.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,394,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 367.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,516 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,288,000 after buying an additional 1,978 shares during the period. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1,487.8% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 16,338 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $8,169,000 after buying an additional 15,309 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,865 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $4,432,000 after buying an additional 553 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Northrop Grumman

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northrop Grumman won a spot in the Pentagon’s drone program as the U.S. accelerates mass production of small military drones, strengthening its exposure to a fast-growing defense priority. Northrop wins spot in Pentagon drone program as U.S. pushes mass production
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary said the Pentagon’s AI pivot is favoring defense contractors like Northrop Grumman, which is being viewed as a key beneficiary of autonomous combat and sensor-network spending. The Pentagon's AI Pivot Supercharges Defense Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Northrop Grumman’s board declared a quarterly dividend of $2.47 per share, reinforcing its shareholder-return profile and signaling confidence in cash generation. Northrop Grumman Board Declares Quarterly Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst-focused coverage reviewed whether Wall Street is bullish or bearish on NOC, but did not point to a new company-specific fundamental change. Is Wall Street bullish or bearish on Northrop Grumman stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: One article noted Northrop’s recent pullback and valuation debate, but framed it more as a reassessment of pricing than a new business setback. Is It Time To Reconsider Northrop Grumman (NOC) After The Recent Share Price Pullback

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $555.83 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.95 billion, a PE ratio of 17.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of -0.11. The business's 50-day moving average price is $647.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $633.35. Northrop Grumman has a 12 month low of $468.29 and a 12 month high of $774.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.06 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $9.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.75 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.72% and a net margin of 10.80%.The company's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.06 EPS. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 27.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation NYSE: NOC is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company's portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company's work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.

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